How are we extending the conversation??

When our students leave our classroom each day, what are they taking with them?

How do we instill wonder and deep inquiry into each student? What are they sharing around their dinner table or discussing on the car ride home?

Meet Katy……

She’s one amazing teacher that has embraced project-based learning in her 3rd grade classroom. On a typical day, Katy hears things from her students like….

1. “I’ve been waiting all morning to tell you about the project I want to do.”

2. “I woke up at two am thinking about how I want to write my book for my project.”

3. “I don’t want to leave your class.”

4. “Can we please keep working?”

5. “I was thinking about what we talked about in SS yesterday and _____________.”

Yes. These. Are. Real. Statements. ……. I know…..

At birthday parties, Katy hears from parents how her students talk and talk about class and the topics they are learning….

Here’s the secret…. Katy intrinsically motivates each and every child in her classroom through the use of project-based learning and teaching.

If you visit Katy’s classroom, you won’t find packets of worksheets, her standing in the front of the room teaching from bell to bell, slideshows of endless information, bored students or dull questioning.

However, you would hear and see…

1. Eager voices sharing ideas with partners and groups

2. Students researching topics to gain expert knowledge

3. A student created timeline lining the wall, which documents the learning they’ve done in each unit

4. Projects of all sizes and shapes

5. Plays, posters, clapping, cheering, 3D models, joy in learning, etc.

6. Katy, supporting her students with questioning, guidance and different perspectives

7. Intrinsically motivated learners

Here’s the best thing about the amazing Katy…. this is just her first year back in the classroom after being away for several years. Her classroom is a model for project-based learning, a model for deep thinking and joyful to be part of.

How did Katy arrive at these seemingly daunting outcomes?

How does she extend the learning conversation from school to home?

Where do we begin with PBL and what is a starting point for you?

Let’s start at the beginning….

It’s all in the design…

Have you ever watched the design show Trading Spaces or listened to Joanna Gaines talk about here eye for design? In much of a professional designer’s foundational work, you’d find a well thought out design board. In both shows, the designers talk about their vision board, which includes the design color, theme, overall look, key design aspects and sample pictures. They work out from this vision board. It serves as an ongoing visual for the project. Each design team knows that no decision can be finalized without first visiting the design board to see if it’s a fit.

A design board works, because it keeps the project ideas focused. The design team shares the vision and works together to bring it to life.

This is much of the foundational work in beginning a project-based unit in an early childhood or elementary classroom. Like a designer’s vision board, a concept board/focus wall is the key element where the teacher and student house vital information. This board is ever evolving and growing throughout the unit. It’s not a canned bulletin board, but a thought provoking area where students’ thoughts, questions and learning are displayed and used throughout the duration of the unit.

What do you notice about this PreK4 teacher’s focus wall?

Let’s chat about a few things….

1. Under the title, you see the driving question, “What makes owls extraordinary?” This question is discussed and approached throughout the entire unit. The idea is that by the end of the unit, each child will be able to clearly speak to this question using their learned expert knowledge.

2. There are a variety of pictures of owl types. These images were used in the first few days of teaching. The students did a gallery walk with partners to discover and wonder about different types of owls.

3. In the upper right hand corner of the board, you’ll find student created and centered vocabulary. This is a big difference from traditional methods of teaching. You’ll notice these are not preplanned/canned vocabulary cards with an image already supplied. In PBL units, vocabulary comes about organically. As the teacher and students read, discover, inquire and investigate, new and important words present themselves. As they come up during the learning, the teacher asks the students to come together and create a definition for their new learning. The teacher also asks a student to illustrate the newly found vocabulary word. Then the word hands on the focus wall for the duration of the unit.

4. On the top left, you’ll find student wonders. These questions were documented and posed early in the unit. Students discussed their wonders as class, shared them out and documented them. As the learning and unit progress, the students work to uncover answers to their wonders.

5. As the unit progresses, you’d also see student work hanging all around the board, along with answers found to the wonders posed.

The entire focus wall serves as a growing idea board. Students visit their learning each day and add new ideas throughout the unit.

A few more examples of focus board/ concept boards:

How might focus walls help you get PBL started in your own learning spaces?

What about your current units and themes could begin with the creation of a concept board? Creating a learning environment that promotes deep thinking, questioning and curiosity can be easily done with the addition of a focus board.

Consider these ideas:

What wall space do you have available to begin a focus board?

What will you include?

How will student voices be heard?

Check out the focus board go to guide to the left. If you click on the picture, it will take you to a PDF file that you can easily print and refer to as you begin planning your first focus board.

In my book, Sparking Curiosity Through Project-Based learning in the Early Childhood Classroom, I spend an entire chapter talking about how to launch a successful project-based unit in your own learning space. Check it out, it’s full of support tools to have you feeling confident about project-based learning.

Concept boards with high levels of student interaction naturally extend the learning conversation from school to home.

If you’d like to continue to grow your understanding of PBL and learn how to bring it into your learning space, join on PBL early childhood community by signing up to our email list and have bits of PBL learning brought right to your inbox weekly.